The present invention relates to a baby bottle holder for holding a baby bottle providing hands free feeding of an infant. More particularly the present invention pertains to devices that are attached to cribs or strollers that allow the baby bottle to remain in or near the baby""s mouth without the continuous assistance of an attendant.
Devices for holding a baby bottle are well known in the art. Many provide hands free feeding of babies. U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,821 by Fabian describes a decorative holder for a baby bottle in which a flexible arm with a bottle receiver connected to one end and a clamp is connected to the other end. U.S. Pat. No. 5,489,075 describes a baby bottle holder and feeder utilizing an articulating arm and a clamping member. U.S. Pat. No. 5,664,746 by Benzakarya relates to a weighted base containing a rotating ball and a movable first arm.
Most of the prior art devices are restricted in some direction of their movement. Unfortunately, the prior art devices are typically designed to be positioned by an adult, but they are not flexible enough with minimal friction to move with the child""s mouth. Flexible arms are often used to position the bottle near the child.
The flexible arms must be rigid enough to hold the weight of the bottle, as such, they are often too rigid to allow a young baby to move the bottle themselves just by the strength of their own head movement.
The prior art devices show that there is a need for an adjustable baby bottle holder that has multiple directions of low resistance movement, which allow the bottle to remain in the baby""s mouth even with head movement by the baby. The bottle needs to stay in the baby""s mouth even with head movement side to side or up and down head movement.
An objective of the present invention, an adjustable baby bottle holder, is to provide multiple directions of low resistance rotational movement. The movement by the baby bottle holder in multiple spatial directions allows the bottle to remain in the baby""s mouth despite head movement by the baby. Directions of head movement side-to-side or up and down can all be accommodated by the invention.
Another objective of the adjustable baby bottle holder is to allow an interchangeability of grasping members to accommodate baby bottles of differing circumference.
An adjustable baby bottle holder includes a rotating member. A top bar is rotatably attached to the rotating member. A bottom bar is attached to the top bar and a grasping member is rotatably attached to the bottom bar.
The grasping member has a force fit snap-on mechanism that allows the grasping member to attach to the bottom bar. The top bar and the bottom bar are generally perpendicular to each other. A flexible arm member with an attachment end and a joint end, attaches to the rotating member at the joint end.
The top bar and bottom bar are connected by a front bar and a back bar. The top bar has a first end and a second end. The bottom bar has a third end and a fourth end. The front bar attaches to the first end and the third end. The back bar attaches to the second end and the fourth end. The front bar and the back bar can twist to form the generally perpendicular orientation of the top bar and the bottom bar, such that there are two directions of freedom of rotation for the baby bottle. The front bar and the back bar can be symmetrical or may vary in shape from each other.
In a second embodiment of the invention the rotating member has a hooking bar. The top bar has a through hole. The through hole receives the hooking bar. A front bar and a back bar connect the top bar and the bottom bar. The grasping member rotatably attaches to the bottom bar. The top bar and the bottom bar are generally perpendicular to each other. The flexible arm member attaches at the joint end to the rotating member.
The adjustable baby bottle holder can also include a first loop, and a second loop attached to the first loop. The first loop is attached to the top bar and the second loop is connected to the bottom bar. The front bar and the back bar can be separated by a distance xe2x80x9cdxe2x80x9d. xe2x80x9cdxe2x80x9d gradually increases from about zero at the ring member to a maximum distance xe2x80x9cdxe2x80x9d at about the grasping member. The top bar is a cylindrical tube having a hollow channel.
The grasping member is designed to hold a baby bottle. The flexible arm can be secured at the attachment end to an object, such as a baby crib, then moved and positioned such that the baby bottle is near the mouth of the baby. The baby bottle can move with the baby and remain in the baby""s mouth.
A first direction of flexible movement is the circumferential rotation of the top bar in relation to the rotating member. A second direction of flexible movement is also available with the grasping member rotatably attached to the rotating member. When the baby is sitting upright and rocks his or her head side to side, then this circumferential rotation keeps the bottle in contact with the baby""s mouth.
The grasping member has one or more fingers that are a semicircle shape about the same diameter as the bottle that the grasping member is designed to hold. The fingers of the grasping member clasp about the baby bottle. The snap-on mechanism is designed so that the grasping member is removably attached to the rotating member. The grasping member may be interchanged with a second grasping member that has fingers that are of differing diameter than the grasping member, such that different size baby bottles can be held.
With the adjustable arm the bottle can easily be tilted upward to prevent leaking of fluids from the nipple. This advantage applies when the baby is taking a short break from feeding and the bottle is temporarily not in use. The feature is also advantageous when the baby falls asleep while feeding where the bottle will remain generally in its established position and not lay with the nipple pointed downward prone to leaking. The adjustable baby bottle holder is further described and illustrated in the accompanying description and figures.